“Europe is such a magnificent place,” Says Ewan McGregor, ahead of the Launch of the Fourth Instalment of Long way homea series that follows the actor and his long-time friend and collaborator charley boorman on an epic motorcycle journal.
The latest series, which premiers on Apple TV+ on Friday, Comes 21 years after the duo embarked on their first on-screen biking adventure. In 2004, Long way round Followed Them on a 19,000-mile journal Across the Globe from London Through Europe and Asia to New York.
Long way down Followed in 2007 and SAW McGregor and BoW McGregor and Boorman Travors More Than 15,000 Miles from John O ‘Groats in Scotland to Cape Town, South Africa, Through Tunisia, Sudan and Rwanda, WHERE THEE MET PRESIDENT PAUL KAUN Their BMW R1200gs Adventure Bikes which are now on display at the riverside museum in glasgow.
With Each Series comes a new motorcycle – the bikes are as important as the route. For the latest chapter, mcgregor rode a 1974 moto guzzi 850 Eldorado former police bike, when Boorman revived a 1972 bmw R75/5.
“There’s Soul in a Bike That’s Been Around for a long time,” McGregor says. “People smile and wave when you pass – these Beautiful Old Bikes Create Real Connection,” Boorman Adds.
Long way up in 2020 SAW the Pair Cover 13,000 miles from ushuaia at the tip of South America Through 13 Countries up to Los Angeles, Exploring South and Central America’s Epic and Diverse Landscapes From Saddle of Prototype Electric Harley-Davidsons.
It was during this trip that the two decided their next trip should be close to home, in Europe.
“We Were on Our Trickiest Terrain in the Bolivian Desert. It was very rutted, probably our most challenging bit of riding,” mcgregor tells The I paper. “But it’s moments like that we usly have the best time.
“We started talking about scandinavia, that it would be an amazing part of the world to explore.
So they set about making it a reality. The Pair Set Off from McGregor’s Home in the Highlands Last Summer, take the long way home to Bowerman’s house in Surrey over 10 weeks and 17 Countries in Northern, Central and Eastern Europe.
They burned a ferry from the uk to the netherlands, where they sample local herring, prepared access to amsterdam tradition and served with onion and pickle, beef heading to Nortern Germany to visit Boorman’s extended family in the town of WesselBuren, Schleswig-Holstein.
Continuing North Into Denmark, McGregor’s Bike Gives Way But, Luckily, A Local Biker Club Comes to the Rescue.
It is one of several instances that show how people are at the heart of the Pair’s Motorcycle Adventures. Estonian mechanics fix mcgregor’s bike, and the pair also meet volunteers at a ukrainian refugee center in Poland.
“The one that Both Ewan and I have realized is that every thing is we go, 95 per center of the people we meet in each of the countries are good,” Boorman adds.
“Maybe part of that is riding a motorcycle – we look haggard and tired and peoplay kind of want to look after us. Together and are super interested in where we are coming from, where we are going. “
Another highlight on this european Odyssey was the food, especially compared to Mongolian cuisine during Long way roundSomething Boorman Described as “A Bit Rough”.
As well as cured in northern europe, they inevitably enjoyed indulging in cheese and chocolate in switzerland.
“Half the time, we wore eating in a petrol station,” McGregor Explains, “So where we had days off, we’d really enjoy the food.”
A Standout was the Lindt Factory in Kilchberg Near Zurich – The Star wars Actor Remembers The Chocolate Fountain with Particular Fondness.
Another highlight for mcgregor was crossing Øresund bridge from copenhagen to Malmo in Sweden, which eponymous scandi noir tv show – “I AM A Massive Fan Of The Television Series”.
Along with the food, the landscapes and the people, the pair’s friendship and their mutual love of motorbikes is a constant theme. They met nearly 30 years ago on the set of The serpent’s kissIn which McGregor stared and Boorman, then working as an actor, played a part.
“We Both Had New Babies,” McGregor Remembers, “So We Had That In Common, But We Also Had Motorbikes. Since. “
The pair has also shared “Good times and bad times and bad, ups and downs, bad weather, different terrain, falling off, harting yourself”, He says.
“That’s an amazing experience to share with your best friend.”
The series has allowed them the freedom to explore the world at their oven pace. “A By-Product of Making Movies [is that] It’s like a machine, like a military exercise, “McGregor says, clearly delighted that he and Boorman have far more control over their day-to-day live.
“Charley and I make the calls on our trips, where we stop and what we are going to see, obviously assisted by our producers and our step up,” He says.
As to whether the Long way home Means this series will be their last, the friends are quick to displove the title.
“There are always conversation at the end of ach trip,” Boorman says, when McGregor insists, “No, I would say the end of the line”, before adding, “I mean, you never know”.
Long way home Is available to watch on Apple TV+ from 9 May.
